11/09/2017

IRS's Under Audit

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration has recently recommended that the IRS needs to do a better job of scrutinizing estate and gift tax returns.

It is not common to think of the IRS as being too lenient or not diligent enough in its work. The public perception of the agency tends to be that it is too hard-nosed. However, it is also sometimes portrayed as being unfair.

It does not audit everyone.

Not every tax return is thoroughly scrutinized. How the IRS chooses what to look into, is often questioned.

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration issued a report that criticized the IRS for its handling of estate and gift tax returns. In part, the report faults the IRS for the way in which it scrutinizes those returns and suggests that the process is not fair to taxpayers.

What that means, however, is not that the IRS should look at fewer returns. It means that they should look at more returns to make sure everyone is filing them appropriately.

The IRS has agreed to make the changes that the inspector general suggested.

If the IRS is going to start scrutinizing more estate and gift tax returns, then the people filing those returns need to be even more diligent than they already are.

Make sure everything is filed properly and that the information is accurate.